November Lunchtime Lecture: Staff Symposium Part 2
2024 Staff Symposium: Part 2
For the last two installments of our 2024 Lunchtime Lecture Series, staff of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden will be giving short presentations on projects they’ve been working on this year. This is a great way to catch up with multiple members of our staff about the amazing work that they do! Each Symposium will consist of three speakers. Please find more information about their presentations below.
“Systematics and evolution of the “true” blueberries (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus, Ericaceae)”
Presented by: Dr. Peter Fritsch
The true blueberries (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus) constitute a clade of about nine to 24 species in temperate North America. This group served as a model system during the Modern Synthesis for examining the origins, prevalence, and diversification of polyploidy in nature, and remains intensively studied because of its economic importance as a food crop. Nonetheless, its taxonomy and evolutionary history is still uncertain, particularly regarding the relative importance of allo- versus autopolyploidy in the evolution of the group, the extent to which levels of ploidy concord with species boundaries, and the utility of the morphological characters traditionally used for delimiting taxa. To address these knowledge gaps, I and colleagues collected over 750 silica-gel-dried leaf samples from natural populations with herbarium vouchers and photographs, nearly 500 of which have been analyzed with flow cytometry to estimate ploidy. A robust diploid phylogenetic estimate has been generated for 36 samples of known ploidy with a target-enrichment phylogenomic approach. To this diploid framework we have added polyploids in several ways to test their evolutionary origins. We found a strong correlation of leaf and stem stomata size and density with ploidy across the clade. With the knowledge gained from these studies, we have examined thousands of herbarium specimens from key U.S. herbaria to begin the process of a comprehensive taxonomic revision that will uniquely include expansive species descriptions, specimens cited, and distribution maps. Progress indicates that the revision will vary substantially from prior work: it includes the taxonomic resolution of two polyploid species to which names have been extensively misapplied, the resurrection of a localized polyploid endemic currently buried in synonymy, and the discovery of two diploids with unique morphology and localized geographic distribution that may represent undescribed species. We also discovered a morphological means to discern “rabbit-eye” blueberry cultivars that have escaped from cultivation.
“Preserving the Past, Exploring the Future: Insights from The Lichen Team in the Philippines”
Presented by Dr. Manuela Del Forno
The global biodiversity crisis, stemming from climate change and the rapid loss of habitats, stands as one of our most pressing and immediate threats. Ecosystems at risk contain thousands of species, many of which have yet to be discovered or fully characterized. Lichens, while ubiquitous, are among the traditionally understudied groups for which basic biodiversity knowledge is lacking. These complex symbiotic units are formed by a main fungal partner(mycobiont), a green algal and/or a cyanobacterial partner (photobiont), along with a diverse community of microorganisms. Lichens form an important and diverse biological assemblage that is present in most terrestrial ecosystems and represent a main nutritional strategy within fungi. It is thus urgent to gain a broader understanding of how diverse lichens are and where most of their diversity might still be discovered. Fortunately, lichen specimens collected worldwide for centuries have been amassed by the millions in herbaria and are available for assessing species boundaries, geographical distributions, and phenotypic variation. Together with new exploration efforts, these extensive collections not only serve as essential resources for traditional taxonomic studies, but also hold immense potential for genetic research and as a roadmap to where future efforts should be concentrated.
“Digitizing Nature: Philecology Herbarium’s Contributions to the Study of Global Biodiversity.”
Presented by Tiana Rehman, Ashley Bales, and Jessica Lane
The Fort Worth Botanic Garden is enhancing the accessibility of its vast preserved botanical collections in order to contribute to global scientific research. Our digitization initiatives provide an enhanced understanding of plant biodiversity, especially when integrated with efforts across our preserved and living collections at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. Join us to learn about the current progress of digitization and access in the Herbarium!
This is a free hybrid seminar. Please join us in person in the Commons of the BRIT Building or virtually via the following link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82755024484.
About the Research Lecture Series
The BRIT Research Lecture Series is designed to create community wide conversation about a diverse range of important and rapidly developing topics. This series gives scientists and speakers a forum for sharing the most current information about their areas of expertise and allows the public to interact with leading members of the local, national, and international scientific community. Read more at fwbg.org/events/lecture-series.
November Lunchtime Lecture: Staff Symposium Part 2
2024 Staff Symposium: Part 2
For the last two installments of our 2024 Lunchtime Lecture Series, staff of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden will be giving short presentations on projects they’ve been working on this year. This is a great way to catch up with multiple members of our staff about the amazing work that they do! Each Symposium will consist of three speakers. Please find more information about their presentations below.
“Systematics and evolution of the “true” blueberries (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus, Ericaceae)”
Presented by: Dr. Peter Fritsch
The true blueberries (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus) constitute a clade of about nine to 24 species in temperate North America. This group served as a model system during the Modern Synthesis for examining the origins, prevalence, and diversification of polyploidy in nature, and remains intensively studied because of its economic importance as a food crop. Nonetheless, its taxonomy and evolutionary history is still uncertain, particularly regarding the relative importance of allo- versus autopolyploidy in the evolution of the group, the extent to which levels of ploidy concord with species boundaries, and the utility of the morphological characters traditionally used for delimiting taxa. To address these knowledge gaps, I and colleagues collected over 750 silica-gel-dried leaf samples from natural populations with herbarium vouchers and photographs, nearly 500 of which have been analyzed with flow cytometry to estimate ploidy. A robust diploid phylogenetic estimate has been generated for 36 samples of known ploidy with a target-enrichment phylogenomic approach. To this diploid framework we have added polyploids in several ways to test their evolutionary origins. We found a strong correlation of leaf and stem stomata size and density with ploidy across the clade. With the knowledge gained from these studies, we have examined thousands of herbarium specimens from key U.S. herbaria to begin the process of a comprehensive taxonomic revision that will uniquely include expansive species descriptions, specimens cited, and distribution maps. Progress indicates that the revision will vary substantially from prior work: it includes the taxonomic resolution of two polyploid species to which names have been extensively misapplied, the resurrection of a localized polyploid endemic currently buried in synonymy, and the discovery of two diploids with unique morphology and localized geographic distribution that may represent undescribed species. We also discovered a morphological means to discern “rabbit-eye” blueberry cultivars that have escaped from cultivation.
“Preserving the Past, Exploring the Future: Insights from The Lichen Team in the Philippines”
Presented by Dr. Manuela Del Forno
The global biodiversity crisis, stemming from climate change and the rapid loss of habitats, stands as one of our most pressing and immediate threats. Ecosystems at risk contain thousands of species, many of which have yet to be discovered or fully characterized. Lichens, while ubiquitous, are among the traditionally understudied groups for which basic biodiversity knowledge is lacking. These complex symbiotic units are formed by a main fungal partner(mycobiont), a green algal and/or a cyanobacterial partner (photobiont), along with a diverse community of microorganisms. Lichens form an important and diverse biological assemblage that is present in most terrestrial ecosystems and represent a main nutritional strategy within fungi. It is thus urgent to gain a broader understanding of how diverse lichens are and where most of their diversity might still be discovered. Fortunately, lichen specimens collected worldwide for centuries have been amassed by the millions in herbaria and are available for assessing species boundaries, geographical distributions, and phenotypic variation. Together with new exploration efforts, these extensive collections not only serve as essential resources for traditional taxonomic studies, but also hold immense potential for genetic research and as a roadmap to where future efforts should be concentrated.
“Digitizing Nature: Philecology Herbarium’s Contributions to the Study of Global Biodiversity.”
Presented by Tiana Rehman, Ashley Bales, and Jessica Lane
The Fort Worth Botanic Garden is enhancing the accessibility of its vast preserved botanical collections in order to contribute to global scientific research. Our digitization initiatives provide an enhanced understanding of plant biodiversity, especially when integrated with efforts across our preserved and living collections at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden. Join us to learn about the current progress of digitization and access in the Herbarium!
This is a free hybrid seminar. Please join us in person in the Commons of the BRIT Building or virtually via the following link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82755024484.
About the Research Lecture Series
The BRIT Research Lecture Series is designed to create community wide conversation about a diverse range of important and rapidly developing topics. This series gives scientists and speakers a forum for sharing the most current information about their areas of expertise and allows the public to interact with leading members of the local, national, and international scientific community. Read more at fwbg.org/events/lecture-series.
